Washing Machine Drums – Explained
May 27, 2009
Clothes have become an integral part of everyone’s life as it exhibits their aesthetic sense. Now with the increase in standard of living, more fashionable clothes are being purchased. With the number of clothes being purchased on the increase, the number of clothes to be washed has also increased. To meet the demands of increasing loads of laundry, washing machines with exciting features and functionalities have gained a strong hold in the appliances market.
Washing machines are appliances that have been specifically designed to wash the laundry. For this purpose they make use of mechanical and thermal energy along with chemical action. The chemical action is induced by the detergents while the thermal energy is obtained from the heating of water. However the washing machine will not be able to function effectively with the mechanical energy that is obtained by the agitation provided by the drums situated in it. Thus drums play an integral part in washing and drying laundry.
There are two types of washing machines; top loading and front loading. The top loading washing machine can again be divided into two parts depending on the type of drum used. They are Top Loading Agitators and Top Loading Impellers.
| Top Loading Agitators : In these types of washing machines the clothes are moved by the rotation of the agitator that is situated in the centre of the drum like a pole. As the drum beings to vibrate, the pole gets rotated thereby moving the clothes. Although these are less expensive, they are a little rough on clothes. |  |
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Top Loading Impellers : In these types of washing machines, the drum includes a fan like structure known as the impeller that is situated at the bottom of the drum. The clothes are moved by the propelling action of the water that is done by the fan. As the agitation and force is applied on water, these types of machines are believed to be more gentle on clothes. |
| Front Loaders : In these types of washing machines, a propeller as well as a pole like agitator is absent. Here the laundry is moved and washed by the tumbling action of the drum. The drum as well as the motor thus needs to be of high and durable quality. |  |
In all these three types of washing machines, the main part is the drum. Hence the maintenance of the drum is of prime importance. Some common types of problems can be rectified by you itself while others might require a specialist. Firstly, the drum might create more noise than usual. This might occur due to overloading of clothes. Most often, removing a couple of clothes might reduce the noise.
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In other instances, the drum might just refuse to rotate properly. This may happen due to several reasons. As the drum consists of several small holes that act as input for the water. Some small objects like pins and hooks may get stuck into these holes. Once you get these removed, the drum starts functioning properly. Yet another reason for malfunctioning of the drum might be the agitator in top loading machines. The agitator might have broken due to the strain of clothes or any kind or sudden tumbling mechanism. In such instances, you need to get the agitator replaced with a new one. Yet another factor for improper functioning of washing machine drum is caused by the damage of the belt that connects the motor to the drum. This stops the drum from rotating. If the belt is broken or damaged the drum will not rotate until it is replaced with a new one.
Prevention is better than cure. So it is better to check a few things while purchasing a washing machine and get one that can provide longer life to the drum. One thing you can check is the presence of a soft padding between the drum and outer lid. This avoids unnecessary friction while the drum is spinning. Also, while loading laundry, ensure that the pins, hooks are properly secured and locked on the clothes so that there is no chance for them to get stuck in the holes of the drum. Please avoid overloading the machine, this causes strain on the motor thereby reducing its life. By taking care of these simple steps, the life of the washing machine can be increased to a great extent.
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